Sailing, Sailing, Sailing….

This is a big weekend. There are three major sailing events on tap.

Let’s kick it off with one of my favorites, the Nokia Oops Cup (Letterman would love that name” “Uma, Oops, Uma, Oops”). The Oops series is sailed in 60-foot tris, and over the next few months will tour the Baltic. The kickoff regatta this weekend is off Helsinki. This year, our old pal Bruno Peyron, with navigating sidekick Roger Nilson, will be in the thick of it. Check out this excellent movie (click “Features,” then “Nokia Oops 2004” video). It’s got a pop soundtrack, lots of musical Swedish babbling, and great shots of the sailing…

Also on tap, the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge. I have mixed feelings about this one. If Maximus makes it (they’ve been having major teething problems), and can line up against Mari Cha IV, then this thing will be interesting. If not, it will be fun to watch Mari Cha, but other than that it will mainly be a transatlantic rally for really, really rich guys on their really, really nice boats. You can read the latest news from Mari Cha here. If we’re lucky we’ll be getting a report or two from a special correspondent onboard Mari Cha, but I don’t want to put any pressure on him so I won’t name names…

Finally, there will be some hardcore racing across the Pond. Sunday is the start of the Calais Round Britain Race, and seven Open 60s will be burning up the track. Check out the list of entrants. We’re looking at some of the best Open 60 sailors on the planet. TWC favorite Mike Golding has stacked his team with Brian Thompson and newly named Volvo Open 70 skipper Neal McDonald. We’ll follow him around. In the meantime, you can amuse yourself watching tons of video from the 2003 race. This is going to be a great one…

Oops Cup Oops: “Hey, Knut! Watch your driving. Dammit, are you listening to Abba again on your IPod?”